Why LINN Energy and LinnCo Shares Crumbled

Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What: Shares of energy master limited partnership LINN Energy and its recently spun-off LinnCo , which owns interests in LINN Energy's oil and gas assets, fell as much as 19% and 17%, respectively, after announcing that the companies were being investigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

So what: According to the release, the SEC has begun a private party investigation of the two companies and requested that LINN and LinnCo save all pertinent documents relating to its financial accounting and hedging strategies, as well as those regarding LINN Energy's pending acquisition of Berry Petroleum . Although LINN Energy is cooperating with the investigation and plans to move forward with the Berry Petroleum deal, that didn't save the companies from a slew of analyst downgrades. Raymond James lowered its rating on LINN Energy to outperform from strong buy and dropped its price target to $40 from $44 on the news. JPMorgan was even less forgiving, knocking both companies down to neutral from overweight and bringing price targets on both down to $35.

Now what: There are a lot of concerning variables here. Last month, Barron'sreported that while LINN Energy's accounting procedures were perfectly legal, they can be quite misleading. Now, with a private SEC probe going on and the Berry Petroleum deal very much up in the air - especially if the SEC investigation becomes formal or if Berry shareholders simply vote against the acquisition - I feel investors have no choice but to stick to the sidelines. LINN Energy and LinnCo may come out completely unscathed, but I suggest never dabbling with company's under investigation by the SEC.

Craving more input? Start by adding LINN Energy and LinnCo to your free and personalized Watchlist so you can keep up on the latest news with each company.

With the swelling of the global middle class, energy consumption will skyrocket over the next few decades, so long-term investors know that you want exposure to this space now. We've picked one incredible natural gas company that presents a rare "double-play" investment opportunity today. We're calling it "The One Energy Stock You Must Own Before 2014," and you can uncover it today, totally free, in our premium research report. Click here to read more.

The article Why LINN Energy and LinnCo Shares Crumbled originally appeared on Fool.com.

Fool contributor Sean Williams has no material interest in any companies mentioned in this article. You can follow him on CAPS under the screen name TMFUltraLong, track every pick he makes under the screen name TrackUltraLong, and check him out on Twitter, where he goes by the handle @TMFUltraLong.The Motley Fool owns shares of JPMorgan Chase. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Copyright © 1995 - 2013 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.